Toasted Almond Ice Cream Sandwiches Food

DARK CHOCOLATE WHOOPIE PIES WITH TOASTED ALMOND CREAM

Steps:

• For the whoopee pies: Position 2 oven racks in the upper and lower thirds of the oven and preheat to 375 degrees F.
• Combine both kinds of chocolate and the butter in a medium heatproof bowl. Fill a medium pot about a third of the way with water and bring to a simmer. Place the over the simmering water and lower the heat. Melt the chocolate and butter gently together, stirring and scraping the sides to avoid scorching, until melted, then remove the bowl from the heat. Cool 2 to 3 minutes.
• Whisk together the sugar, eggs and vanilla in another bowl. Set aside. Sift together the flour, cocoa powder, salt and baking powder in another bowl. Whisk in the egg and then the chocolate mixture. Do not overmix.
• Spray 2 baking sheets with nonstick spray and drop the batter on them in large spoonfuls about 2 inches in diameter, leaving room between each to allow spreading.
• Bake, rotating and switching the positions of baking sheets halfway through, until the whoopee pies puff up slightly and settle, 6 to 8 minutes. Allow to cool for 10 minutes on the baking sheet before gingerly lifting them off and transferring to a flat surface.
• For the filling: Heat the milk in a medium saucepan until hot and add 3/4 cup toasted almonds. Turn off the heat. Allow the almonds to steep in the milk 25 to 30 minutes. Strain the milk and pour it back into the same pan.
• Beat together the sugar, cornstarch, flour and egg yolks in an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment until thick, 3 to 4 minutes.
• Pour some of the hot milk mixture over the eggs and blend. Pour the egg mixture back into the milk and cook over medium heat, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon, until the mixture thickens, 5 to 8 minutes. Stir in the almond extract and continue to cook until the mixture begins to bubble, then cook for an additional 2 minutes, stirring. Transfer to a bowl and cover with a layer of plastic pressed against the surface so the cream doesn't form a skin. Refrigerate 1 hour.
• Sandwich some of the cream and the remaining 1/4 cup toasted almonds between chocolate rounds. Drizzle with melted chocolate if using. Serve immediately or refrigerate until ready to serve.

TOASTED ALMOND ICE CREAM

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spread almonds in a single layer on a baking sheet and roast 10-15 minutes, until fragrant and toasted, but be careful not to burn them. Let cool, then chop into small pieces and set aside.
• In a medium sauce pan, mix the sugar, milk, half of the cream and pinch of salt and heat over medium heat just until the edges start to bubble and steam. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the mixture begins steaming and bubbling around the edges. Meanwhile, whisk the egg yolks in a separate bowl and set aside.
• When milk mixture is steaming and bubbling around the edges, remove 1 cup of it and slowly drizzle the hot milk mixture into the beaten yolks while whisking continuously, to temper the eggs. Make sure not to scramble the eggs by adding all the hot liquid too fast. Add remaining milk mixture and stir to combine into a thin custard. Pour the custard mixture back into the saucepan and continue cooking until it starts to coats the back of a wooden spoon (between 170 and 175 on a candy thermometer) - typically only 1-2 minutes.
• Pour the remaining 1 cup of heavy cream into a medium bowl, then add the warm custard by first pouring through a clean mesh strainer into remaining heavy cream and stirring to combine. Add vanilla and almond extract, then cover and cool completely in the refrigerator (4-6 hours or overnight) before churning.
• Once the custard base is thoroughly chilled, pour into an ice cream maker and churn according to the manufacturer's instructions. When the ice cream is about halfway churned, add in the chopped roasted almonds and allow the ice cream to continue to churn until it is done. My ice cream maker only takes about 20 minutes to reach a soft serve stage. Pour churned soft-serve ice cream into a freezer-safe container, cover and place in a freezer to cure for at least 4-6 hours so the ice cream can harden all the way through.

ALMOND ICE CREAM

Steps:

• In a medium saucepan, cook ½ cup sliced almonds with the sugar and the salt over medium heat until deeply golden and caramelized, about 10 minutes. Transfer to a plate. Reserve.
• In the same pot, toast 1 cup sliced almonds until deeply golden, about 5 minutes. Add cream, milk, sugar and salt to the pot and simmer until sugar completely dissolves, about 5 minutes. Remove pot from heat. In a separate bowl, whisk yolks. Whisking constantly, slowly whisk about a third of the hot cream into the yolks, then whisk the yolk mixture back into the pot with the cream.
• Return pot to medium-low heat and gently cook until mixture is thick enough to coat the back of a spoon (about 170 degrees on an instant-read thermometer). Remove from heat and let steep 1 hour.
• Strain through a fine-mesh sieve into a bowl, pressing down hard on the solids. Add almond extract to base and cool mixture to room temperature. Cover and chill at least 4 hours or overnight.
• Churn in an ice cream machine according to manufacturer's instructions. Break reserved caramelized nuts into pieces and add to base during the last 2 minutes of churning. Serve directly from the machine for soft serve, or store in freezer until needed.

TOASTED ALMOND SUNDAES

Steps:

• Soften ice creams to scoop 10 seconds per pint in the microwave or set on kitchen counter 10 to 15 minutes. Put 1 scoop each of caramel ice cream and vanilla ice cream into dessert dishes. Top each with a shot of liqueur. Heat the dessert sauce 40 seconds in microwave (remove the metal top of jar). Pour caramel sauce over sundaes and top with whipped cream and bits of smoked almonds.

TOASTED ALMOND ICE CREAM SANDWICHES

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 400°F. Line baking sheet with parchment paper. Cut pastry into thirds lengthwise along folds, then cut each strip crosswise into 4 pieces. Arrange squares on prepared sheet, spacing apart. Whisk sugar, cinnamon, and espresso powder in medium bowl. Add almonds and egg white; stir to coat. Spread almond mixture atop squares, dividing evenly.
• Bake pastry squares until tops are golden around edges, 18 to 20 minutes. Cool completely. Using serrated knife, cut each piece horizontally in half. Spread 1/3 cup ice cream over each pastry bottom, then press on top to adhere. Freeze until ice cream is hard, about 1 hour.

SAFFRON AND TOASTED ALMOND ICE CREAM

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
• Combine milk and half of the sugar in a large saucepan and heat gently.
• Place the almonds on a sheet pan and toast in the oven, shaking the pan occasionally, for 5 to 6 minutes or until almonds are light brown.
• Add the almonds immediately to the milk and sugar mixture. Once the milk mixture comes to a gentle boil, remove from the heat, cover and let steep 30 minutes. After 30 minutes, place the milk mixture on low heat. While this is heating, combine the remaining sugar with the egg yolks and either by hand or with an electric mixer, whisk until the eggs become pale in color, about 3 minutes. Slowly drizzle a little of the hot milk mixture into the egg yolk mixture to increase the temperature of the yolk mixture. Next, slowly whisk the yolk mixture into the milk mixture. Cook the mixture over a low heat, stirring constantly. Once the mixture has thickened and coats the back of the spoon, about 3 to 5 minutes, remove from heat and strain through a find sieve into a high-sided canister. Add the saffron and amaretto and place in a large bowl of ice water. Stir occasionally and when completely cool, place in an ice cream maker and churn according to the manufacturer's directions. The texture will then be best if you transfer the ice cream to another container and place in freezer for at least 3 hours or overnight.

TOASTED ALMOND

Steps:

• Add liqueurs to a cocktail shaker with ice. Shake and strain into a 10-ounce rocks glass over ice. Top with heavy cream and serve with a short straw.

TOASTED ALMOND ICE CREAM

Steps:

• Melt the butter in a Cuisinart® EveryDay Stainless 10 - inch skillet. Add the slivered almonds and kosher salt. Cook over medium low heat until almonds are toasted and golden, stirring frequently, about 4 - 5 minutes. Remove from the heat, strain (the butter may be strained and reserved for another use, it will have an almond flavor) and chill the nuts. In a medium bowl, use a Cuisinart® Hand Mixer on low speed to combine the milk and sugar until the sugar is totally dissolved, about 1 - 2 minutes. Stir in the heavy cream, and extracts. Cover and chill if not mixing immediately. Assemble a Cuisinart® Automatic Frozen Yogurt - Ice Cream and Sorbet Maker (be sure the chiller bowl is totally frozen). Turn on the machine; pour the liquid mixture into the freezer bowl and let mix until thickened, about 25 - 30 minutes. While the mixture is freezing, chop the cooled slivered almonds roughly. Add the chopped nuts to the mixture during the last 5 minutes of freezing. Turn the machine OFF. The ice cream will have a soft, creamy texture. If desired, transfer the ice cream to an airtight container and place in the freezer for about 2 hours until firm. If made ahead, take ice cream out of freezer 10 - 15 minutes before serving.

COCONUT AND ALMOND ICE CREAM SANDWICHES

Steps:

• Make the cookies: Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Sift together flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, and 1/2 teaspoon salt in a medium bowl. Heat butter and semisweet chocolate in a heatproof bowl set over a pan of simmering water until melted.
• Beat sugar, eggs, vanilla, and melted-chocolate mixture with a mixer on medium speed until combined. Reduce speed to low, and gradually beat in flour mixture until just combined. Divide dough in half, and fold milk-chocolate chunks into 1 half.
• Using a 1 1/2-inch ice cream scoop, drop dough onto parchment-lined baking sheets, spacing about 2 inches apart. Bake, rotating and tapping sheets on counter halfway through, until cookies are flat and surfaces begin to crack, 15 to 17 minutes. Transfer cookies on parchment to a wire rack, and let cool.
• Meanwhile, make the candied almonds: Raise oven temperature to 350 degrees. Coat a baking sheet with cooking spray. Bring sugar, butter, corn syrup, and 1/4 teaspoon salt to a boil in a small saucepan. Add almonds, and stir to coat. Spread out onto baking sheet, and bake, tossing occasionally to recoat nuts, until golden, about 10 minutes. Let cool. Finely chop nuts, and sift to discard dust.
• Assemble the sandwiches: Using a 2 1/2-inch ice cream scoop, drop ice cream onto half of the cookies. Top with remaining cookies (group plain chocolate cookies together and milk-chocolate-chunk cookies together). Press down gently to push ice cream to edge of cookies. Place candied almonds and coconut in 2 separate bowls. Roll outside of each milk-chocolate-chunk sandwich in almonds; transfer to a baking sheet. Roll outside of each chocolate sandwich in coconut; transfer to baking sheet. Freeze until ready to serve.